Legendary footballer Lionel Messi thanked the fans for all the love he received on his ‘GOAT Tour of India 2025’ and claimed that he will one day return to the country and possibly play a match here one day.
Messi’s ‘GOAT Tour of India 2025’ has been one of the biggest sporting events in this country this year. Despite the national football team not being anywhere near good, the country has some of the most passionate football fandoms. India can stake the claim for having the most football fans of any country in the world.
Lionel Messi Promises To Return To India Someday
The tour started on December 13th in Kolkata, where he appeared in front of the paying crowd at the Salt Lake Stadium. That particular event was poorly managed, resulting in fans causing a riot after not being able to see their idol.
Later that day, the Argentine superstar went to Hyderabad, where he played a 7v7 game at the Rajiv Gandhi International Cricket Stadium.
On the 14th, Messi went to Mumbai. In the City of Dreams, the GOAT first participated in a Padel competition before participating in a celebrity football game and then appearing at the iconic Wankhede Stadium. This event was handled much better than the one in Kolkata.
Today, on December 15th, the Barcelona legend came to the national capital in Delhi. Here, he had a meeting with Prime Minister Narendra Modi and several dignitaries. Then, in the afternoon, he participated in the final event of this tour, where he also felicitated the Minerva Academy team that thrashed a celebrity team in a friendly match on the same day.
At the same event, Lionel met several celebrities, including Home Minister Amit Shah, Delhi CM Rekha Gupta, and Indian football legends Bhaichung Bhutia and Sunil Chhetri.
During his appearance in the Arun Jaitley Stadium, Lionel Messi addressed the crowd in his native Spanish. But his speech was later translated for the crowd. During the speech, he thanked the crowd for all the support and promised that he would return to India someday.
“We carry all this love with us—we will definitely return, hopefully one day to play a match or on another occasion, but we will definitely return to visit India—thank you very much,” said the Inter Miami player.
Lionel Messi, right before the tour, lifted the MLS playoff title and was Inter Miami’s highest goal scorer this season. He will represent Argentina in the 2026 FIFA World Cup next year, which will most likely be his last major competition.
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